The Partnership for Health and Accountability (PHA) presented its prestigious Quality and Patient Safety Award to Redmond Regional Medical Center in Rome for its project that improved patient care in the...

Redmond Introduces Cardiac MRI: Providing 3-D Images of Beating Heart

Rome, Georgia – While magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) technology has been available for more than two decades, imaging the heart has been a challenge because the heart is moving and images come out blurry. With the addition of Northwest Georgia’s first Cardiac MRI system at Redmond Regional Medical Center, physicians can now obtain amazingly clear and detailed images of the beating heart in real time.

”We are excited to be able to provide cardiac MRI services to our community,” says Curt Layton, Director of Radiology at Redmond Regional Medical Center. “Passion for excellence in cardiac care is the norm at Redmond. This passion is manifested yet again through this collaborative service combining the skill and expertise of our local Cardiologists and staff with strategic partners within HCA. Our goal is to remove every barrier in providing comprehensive cardiac care and we feel this service does just that.”

With the addition of cardiac MRI, Redmond will now be able to diagnose and treat heart problems more quickly and with greater confidence. Cardiac MRI allows for the best possible view of the heart’s chambers and the characteristics of the heart muscle itself. The procedure is fast, very accurate, and most important for the patient, completely non-invasive, radiation-free and painless.

“Cardiac MRI helps us to see the BIG PICTURE and solves the problem in some very difficult clinical scenarios when the diagnosis is not obvious. It is the gold standard in assessing heart function, volumes, viability and right heart function that is hard to evaluate by other modalities. We are excited that the technology is here in Northwest Georgia to help provide state-of-the art medical care” said Dr. Ravinder Reddy, Harbin Clinic Cardiologist.

The image quality of cardiac MRI surpasses that of more commonly used imaging techniques and allows physicians to view the heart and blood vessels from different angles and create moving images of the heart throughout its beating cycle. Physicians viewing a cardiac MRI image can see how well the heart muscle is contracting and precisely identify areas of damaged tissue. One of the main advantages of cardiac MRI is that it allows physicians to distinguish viable heart muscle from scar tissue.

During an MRI examination, a patient lies still in the large doughnut-shaped magnet of the MRI machine. The machine uses the magnet and radiofrequency waves to produce computerized images of the heart and its structures. Because the procedure is non-invasive, the patient does not have to fast.

For more information about Cardiac MRI or to schedule an appointment with a physician, call Medline at (706) 368-8480.

Redmond Regional Medical Center is a 230 bed facility, serving as a referral source for all of northwest Georgia and parts of Alabama. Including its healthcare partners, Redmond has over 245 physicians with more than 30 specialties and a support staff of approximately 1,300 associates.

Making excellent medical care convenient and available is Redmond’s first priority. With outstanding medical care and attention available 24/7, the hospital offers a variety of inpatient and outpatient programs, many of which are unique to the northwest Georgia region. Redmond offers a full service cardiology product line and is nationally recognized as a top cardiac care center. Other areas of excellence include emergency care, orthopedics, vascular care, an inpatient rehabilitation unit and more. For additional information on Redmond Regional Medical Center, visit the Redmond website at www.redmondregional.com.

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Redmond’s weekly heart health series on Hometown Headlines Radio Edition concluded this morning (delayed just slightly from last Thursday morning’s snow). Thank you to Telena Cole, RN & Redmond’s Cardiovascular Clinical Navigator and to Dr. Dhru Girard, Harbin Clinic Cardiovascular Surgeon. They did a great job talking about heart health and the open heart surgery program at Redmond. Did you tune in? #AmericanHeartMonth #HeartHealthAllYearLong